Becki Barratt, a 33-year-old fitness coach and mother of two, was left paralysed down her left side after suffering a stroke in April 2026 while breastfeeding her three-week-old son. The stroke occurred on the same day as the London Marathon, and she has now set her sights on taking part in the 2027 event.
Sudden onset of symptoms
Becki, who is mother to Aréya, three, and Beauden, five months, described the terrifying moment her hand began to spasm while holding her newborn. 'Instantly, I knew something wasn't right. Holding Beau, panic swept through me. I shouted for my partner, James. I remember saying: "Something is wrong."'
As she stood up, her legs gave way, and she collapsed to the floor while still holding Beau. James called 999, and Becki told him she felt like she was having a stroke. Paramedics arrived within 15 minutes, but by the time they reached the hospital, the entire left side of her body was paralysed.
Diagnosis and treatment
Doctors initially performed a CT scan, which showed no sign of a stroke, but her symptoms strongly suggested one. They decided to administer thrombolysis – an emergency clot-busting treatment. The following day, an MRI scan confirmed the stroke, revealing brain damage caused by a clot. Becki spent almost a week in hospital, during which she continued to express milk for Beau, sometimes having to throw it away or send bottles home with her parents.
'I have such sad memories of sitting there pumping milk. Sometimes I had to throw it away. Sometimes my parents would take bottles back for Beau,' she said.
Recovery and support
Becki's recovery began with trying to squeeze her hand, then progressing from sitting to standing, and finally taking a few steps with the help of four nurses. She was discharged after five days and continues to recover at home, with support from the Stroke Association, who contacted her to offer guidance and help over the phone.
Doctors are still investigating the cause of her stroke. Becki said: 'I still don't know why it happened. For us, that uncertainty is particularly difficult. We would love to have a third baby. So we're hoping we can find some answers.'
Raising awareness and future goals
Becki is now determined to raise awareness that stroke can happen to anyone. 'If someone had asked me before my stroke who gets a stroke, I probably would have had a completely different picture in my head. I certainly wouldn't have imagined a healthy 33-year-old mum breastfeeding her newborn baby. But stroke doesn't discriminate.'
She has set herself the goal of standing on the start line of the London Marathon in 2027. 'Watching the London Marathon from my hospital bed, unable to walk, I made a promise to myself that one day I'd be on that start line. At the time it felt impossible, but it gave me something to hold on to when everything else felt so uncertain.'
Juliet Bouverie OBE, CEO at the Stroke Association, commented: 'Becki's experience is a powerful reminder that a stroke can happen to anyone, regardless of their age, fitness or lifestyle. Every five minutes in the UK, someone has a stroke, yet many people still think stroke only affects older people. While the overall risk of stroke in younger adults remains low, around one in four strokes happen in people of working age. Pregnancy and the weeks following childbirth are also recognised as periods when the risk of stroke is higher, even though it remains uncommon.'
